Good morning all,

For the past few months, I have been swapping Emails with the Delaware Division of Health over the issue of restaurant inspection reports not being immediately available to the public.

The News Journal/Delaware Online  had been doing the same thing and went the investigative route with   stories and an editorial calling for the reports to be made available.

Along the way, reporters dug through past reports and shed light on how other states and local governments handled the process of keeping the public informed. One can question the need for digging up inspection reports from 2017, some of which were already public knowledge. 

To its credit,  the state division has been more than cooperative about providing cease and desist orders when inspection issues are found, but the issue of a lack of public access remains up in the air. 

When one logs on to the state’s open data site, restaurant inspection summaries abruptly stop in December 2017.

It turns out that the state – despite much talk about open data and the use of cutting-edge technology – had an alarmingly ancient system at work when it came to restaurant inspections.

One Email from Public Health mentioned  Windows 97 technology and the need for an overhaul that will take time.

My suggestion was that the Division of Health simply put inspection information on an Excel spreadsheet as an emergency measure and post the information. A few days of typing would do the trick.

I also pointed to states that require results to be posted in a prominent place. Out west that spot can be the entrance or next to the kitchen. 

I was thanked for my suggestion.

Here’s to taking it easy during what we can hope is the last bout of heat and humidity – Doug Rainey, publisher.